The invention is concerned with a kitchen work unit, and more particularly a slicer for foodstuffs, primarily garden vegetables and the like.
The basic known slicer, as differentiated from a common kitchen knife, includes a fixed blade with a laterally offset infeed platform aligned with the blade and defining therewith a slot of predetermined height. In use, the foodstuff, for example a cucumber, is slid along the infeed platform toward and through the blade, slicing from the foodstuff a portion or slice of a thickness corresponding to the height of the slot with the slice falling beneath the slicer and the bulk or remainder of the foodstuff continuing over the blade onto an upper surface or receiving platform.
The basic slicer can be hand held and oriented at a convenient working angle as desired. Note for example U.S. Pat. No. 2,101,595 to G. Potstada, issued Dec. 7, 1937.
Slicers and similar implements, as a matter of convenience in both stabilizing the slicer and gathering the slices, have been associated with underlying containers, bowls or the like as will be noted in the following U.S. Pat. Nos.:
2,615,486, Marcus, Oct. 28, 1952 PA1 2,741,286, Bittle, Apr. 10, 1956 PA1 3,589,421, Locker, June 19, 1971 PA1 4,212,431, Doyel, July 15, 1980
A further example of known slicers will be seen in the patent to H. A. V. Johansson, U.S. Pat. No. 3,495,639, issued Feb. 17, 1970, wherein the hand held slicer utilizes a threadedly mounted adjustment screw to adjust the thickness of the slices. While not specifically addressed in the Johansson patent, it would appear that the use of an exposed adjustment screw in a food environment, particularly wherein food is being cut, could give rise to problems of cleanliness.